◎Zeng Yuli
As "watching movies during the Chinese New Year" has become a New Year custom, Spring Festival movies are a hot topic on social media during the Chinese New Year. In fact, dramas also have Spring Festival stalls, and their history is much longer than Spring Festival movies. Before "Spring Festival stalls" became a special concept, every year several major TV stations would launch a new year's "New Year drama" around the Lunar New Year. ". The New Year drama is the earliest Spring Festival drama. As "Spring Festival" has become a popular concept in the film field, as well as the decline in the influence of TV stations and the rise of video website platforms, Spring Festival dramas have gradually replaced the new year's drama as the industry saying.
In the TV era, the New Year's drama is often the most important drama of the year on the TV station; in the era of video websites, just like every year's blockbuster movies often come from the Spring Festival show, the Spring Festival show also has a high hit rate in the market. stage, such as " human world " in 2022 and "Hurricane" in 2023. For the 2024 Spring Festival drama series, several major mainstream video websites have come up with S+ dramas, such as Tencent Video's top character drama " in blizzard time ", iQiyi's period drama "Southern World" that competes with "Human World" "Come to the North", Youku's blockbuster IP suspense drama "The Case of the Tang Dynasty"... However, these dramas have not replicated the success of the Spring Festival releases in previous years, and most of them have been tepid.
looks back at the changes from the New Year dramas to the Spring Festival dramas, and analyzes the preferred types of dramas during the Spring Festival. We will find that although there are constant dramas during the Spring Festival, whether they can make it out of the entertainment industry still depends on their quality.
The "New Year's Drama" of the Television Era
Starting in the 1990s, with the further improvement of people's living standards and the advancement of television technology, televisions, especially color televisions, have rapidly become popular in urban and rural areas of China, and television has gradually become a daily life for people. an integral part of.
Due to the relatively limited entertainment options at the time, television became one of the most important forms of entertainment for families. This was also the "golden age" of television. The ratings of TV dramas can often reach very high levels and have a great impact on public opinion. Some popular dramas can even lead social trends and influence public values and lifestyles.
In the golden age, TV stations had great influence and competition. Every year from the Gregorian New Year to the Lunar New Year, some nationally influential TV stations would broadcast the New Year drama. The New Year drama has the characteristics of high investment, large production, luxurious lineup, and broad mass base. It is one of the most hard-core and competitive TV series broadcast by the TV station in a year. Before broadcasting, the TV station will carry out intensive warm-up to whet the audience's appetite.
TV station attaches great importance to the new year's drama, because the new year's drama is the beginning of the new year of the TV station. It is not only a wonderful ending to the TV series achievements in the past year, but also an important layout for the ratings and brand influence in the coming year. If the drama at the beginning of the new year gets the first impression and becomes an instant hit, it can create good social response and economic benefits, demonstrate the TV station's production strength and vision for drama selection, help the TV station establish its brand image, further consolidate and enhance the market share of the prime time period, and drive follow-up Attention to the play. From a pragmatic perspective, TV stations can also attract more advertising investment through the New Year's Eve drama to maximize commercial value.
Take CCTV as an example. As the most authoritative TV channel with the widest coverage, it has always attached great importance to the scheduling of the new year's drama. Many classic plays broadcast on CCTV 1 are broadcast as new year dramas. For example, the opening drama in 1998 was "Water Margin", in 1999 it was "Yongzheng Dynasty ", in 2002 it was "The Granary of the World", in 2005 it was "Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty", and in 2006 it was "The Qiao Family" "Grand Courtyard", and in 2008 it was "Crossing the Guandong"... These new year dramas have the important mission of conveying the country's mainstream discourse and creating a national image. They also promote mainstream values and guide social public opinion.
Another TV station worth mentioning is Hunan Satellite TV. Hunan Satellite TV focuses on a youthful and dynamic brand image and has broad influence among young audiences.Most of the new year dramas it broadcasts are youth themes such as urban emotions, campus life, idol dramas, etc., which are more in line with the psychological needs and aesthetic tastes of young audiences. For example, in 2011, the new year's drama was "The Palace Lock", which was popular with Yang Mi and Feng Shaofeng. In 2013, the new year's drama was the youth idol version of "The Swordsman". In 2015, it was the Republic of China idol drama "Live." "Sexy and fragrant", 2018 is "Do you know whether it should be green, fat, red and thin"...
The new year's drama is an early version of the Spring Festival drama. Before the New Year custom of "watching movies during the New Year" was formed, the common public habit was to watch the Spring Festival Gala on New Year's Eve and watch the New Year's Eve drama during the New Year.
"Spring Festival Episodes" in the Era of Video Websites
The concept of "Spring Festival Episodes" began in the film field. In 2006, the concept of "Spring Festival stalls" began to be frequently mentioned by the media, but at that time the total box office in seven days was only 80 million yuan. The public has not yet developed the habit of watching movies during the New Year, and cinema business during the Spring Festival is often the most difficult time of the year. Many Chinese-language blockbusters have avoided the Spring Festival schedule. The most popular schedule among famous domestic directors is the Lunar New Year schedule in December. The 2013 Spring Festival is a critical watershed. The movie "Journey to the West: Conquer the Demons" directed by Stephen Chow was released on New Year's Day and quickly sparked a movie-going craze. The film broke more than 20 box office records. Since then, the Spring Festival period has gradually changed from a less popular period to the most popular period of the year. The Spring Festival period generally lasts for seven days, but its box office output efficiency is amazing, accounting for even 10% of the whole year's box office output.
The term "Spring Festival dramas" gradually replaces "New Year dramas". This is not only influenced by the popular Spring Festival movies, but the fundamental reason is that with the rapid development of Internet technology and the popularization of smart devices, audiences are becoming more and more inclined to Watch the series online. With the rise of video websites and the loss of traditional TV audiences, the preferred platform for young people to watch dramas has shifted from TV stations to video websites. Video websites such as iQiyi, Tencent Video, Youku and Mango TV have become new audio-visual content giants. They not only purchase the copyrights of a large number of blockbuster film and television dramas, but also produce many large-scale investment and large-production online dramas. In addition, by collecting user viewing data, video websites can more accurately understand audience preferences and needs, and be more targeted in content production and recommendations, further improving user experience and stickiness.
If the popularity of purely online dramas such as "Tomb Robbers" and "Prince Concubine's Promotion" in 2015 was the first year of the rise of video websites and online dramas, then in just three to five years, the impact of dramas broadcast on video websites will be The power has far exceeded that of TV stations. This can be seen from the changes in the broadcast rhythm of TV stations and video websites. In the beginning, major dramas were basically "online first, then online". After the TV station was broadcast, the video website could broadcast it simultaneously; soon it became "simultaneous between Taiwan and the Internet". When the TV station started broadcasting, the video website would also broadcast simultaneously; now it is basically They are all "online first and backend". The video website broadcasts it before the TV station, and members of the video website platform can watch 2-6 more episodes. For example, this year's CCTV New Year's Eve drama "Dajiang Dahezhi Cange" is broadcast simultaneously on iQiyi and Tencent Video, and members can watch 2 episodes in advance; CCTV's eight New Year's Eve drama "South and North" are synchronized on iQiyi When it airs, members can watch 2 episodes in advance every day. Therefore, compared to traditional TV stations’ New Year dramas, audiences pay more attention to the Spring Festival schedules of video websites. Why does the
video website also pay attention to the Spring Festival? Although the influence of video websites exceeds that of many TV stations, their lives are not easy to worry about: the content cost of video websites is very high, and currently profitable iQiyi has lost tens of billions of yuan; domestic video websites are still unable to build a network like Netflix There is a content moat, and the loyalty of paid members is not high; at the same time, short videos have launched fierce challenges, constantly competing for time from users. The Spring Festival has become an important node for video websites to compete for viewers’ time. During the Spring Festival, audiences have more free time, and watching dramas and checking social media are important forms of entertainment for young people. Audiences' time spent on video websites is growing rapidly, and a good drama can easily trigger a heated discussion among the people and form a "drama-watching craze." Therefore, the chances of a Spring Festival drama becoming a hit are higher - in 2022, "In the World" became a hit due to word-of-mouth fermentation during the Spring Festival, and in 2023, "Hurricane" exerted an astonishing long-tail effect during the Spring Festival (video websites had already Ended, TV station is still broadcasting).
The type of Spring Festival dramas prefers
the New Year dramas chosen in the golden era of television, which are more in line with the tone of the TV station. For example, CCTV's series of historical dramas, period dramas or military dramas tend to be solemn, serious and profound, focusing on promoting mainstream values; Hunan Satellite TV's new year's drama has the characteristics of youth and idolization. To this day, these characteristics remain.
Since the content broadcast on video website platforms is more diverse, it is difficult to say which platform broadcasts more serious or lively dramas. Video websites mainly have three aspects in selecting dramas for the Spring Festival: First, the TV station’s new year dramas, such as "In the World" in 2022 and this year's "South and North" - they are the TV stations' preferred years. Major dramas are all broadcast on video websites "online first and backstage". Secondly, Spring Festival dramas are inevitably influenced by the style of Spring Festival movies. The dramas try to have a "New Year feel" or "New Year flavor", such as family comedies. Third, major dramas with diversified genres and themes do not deliberately cater to the Spring Festival tonality, but win with content, such as 2023's "Horse".
html The popularity of dramas in the 0's is due to their genre advantages. Period dramas have a long time span, covering the memories and experiences of several generations, and have a certain degree of attraction and resonance for audiences of different ages. During the Spring Festival, when families reunite and spend time together, watching period dramas is a cultural activity that the whole family can participate in. It can easily arouse the audience's nostalgia for the past years and recognition of family values. For example, "The World" depicts the vicissitudes of Chinese society and the changes in the lives of ordinary people in the past few decades from the 1970s to the present, and delicately restores the social style and people's life scenes of different eras. Audiences of different eras can feel the strong emotions of the times. Breath and real sense of life.On the other hand, period dramas revolve around the ups and downs of the fate of small people in the context of the big era, telling the story of ordinary people's growth and struggle in the midst of social changes, and how they stick to their beliefs and pursue their ideals. It interweaves the fate of individuals and families with the fate of the entire nation, sublimating the individual's "small self" to the "big self" of the era, and eulogizes the spiritual character of courage to take responsibility, perseverance, and advancing and retreating with the country. This theme full of positive energy is in line with the happy, peaceful and inspirational atmosphere of family and country during the Spring Festival. From the three generations of the Zhou family in "The World", the audience can see the beauty of sincerity, kindness, generosity, morality, and responsibility. This is the eternal spiritual background of the Chinese people.
Family comedy is another mainstream drama format in Spring Festival dramas. Family comedy, first of all, is "family comedy", which usually takes the family as the background and tells life stories between family members. The content is easy to understand and has a broad audience base. It is suitable for all ages to watch and enhance family communication; the second is "comedy". The content is humorous, the tone is light-hearted, and the spiritual core is positive. It complements the cultural connotation of the Spring Festival and meets people's needs to feel happy and relax during the Spring Festival holiday.
Since 2015, "Country Love 8" has been broadcast from TV stations to video websites, and has now been broadcast on "Country Love 16". The "Country Love" series has been scheduled to be broadcast on the eve of the Spring Festival for many years in a row, becoming a constant companion for viewers during the Spring Festival. The series revolves around life in the rural areas of Northeast China, with a strong local flavor and local cultural characteristics; the story is told in a relaxed and pleasant way, with vivid characters, different personalities, and deeply rooted in the hearts of the people; each season has new story lines and topic points, which are closely related to each other. Keeping up with the changing times, new elements are constantly injected into the show, allowing the show to continue to attract old audiences.
Although comedy movies are very popular during the Spring Festival, if they are too single, they will inevitably fatigue the audience. Therefore, many times, Spring Festival movies will include blockbusters of different types and styles. The Spring Festival dramas are not limited to period dramas and family comedies. Moreover, there is no shortage of diversified dramas during the Spring Festival. For example, during last year’s Spring Festival, iQiyi’s “Hurricane” was a crime-fighting drama, and Tencent Video’s “三级” was a science fiction drama.During this year’s Spring Festival, Tencent Video’s “In the Blizzard Time” is a youth idol drama, and Youku’s “The Case of Tang Dynasty” is a suspense detective drama in ancient costumes. All efforts are aimed at attracting and retaining audiences and increasing the number of paying members by launching high-quality blockbuster dramas.
High-quality content can win
The 2024 Spring Festival drama series failed to replicate the popularity of previous years. Why?
htmlThe 20's drama "South to North" has a strong cast: directed by Zheng Xiaolong, written by Gao Mantang, and also invited Ding Yongdai from "The World" to sit in, and there are also many young actors such as Bai Jingting and Jin Chen. The story begins in 1978 and tells the story of young policeman Wang Xin and old railway policeman Ma Kui fighting side by side on a steam locomotive - it not only reflects the passing of the torch between the old and new generations of railway police, but also witnesses the development of China's railways. From steam locomotives to electric locomotives to the development of high-speed trains, witness the rapid changes in China."South to North" has a good intention and a smooth story. The "train" itself is a highly story-based space, bringing together people from different regions, social classes, ages, genders, occupations, etc. Each passenger has his own story and life experience, and "South to North" writes about various aspects of the world based on this; the railway compound also carries rich humanistic emotions and social functions, forming a unique and rich human touch - the plot of The dual-line narrative forms a good attraction. Unfortunately, the costumes of the show are too new. For audiences who pursue authenticity and immersive experience, everything that is too "new" will weaken their trust and acceptance of the plot. Moreover, the play lacks the "historical weight" of period dramas, pursues beauty and ease too much, ignores the weight of historical turning points on individuals, and weakens the historical reflection function carried by period dramas.
Although the family comedy "Country Love 16" has a stable audience, many problems in the "Country Love" series have hindered its expansion into new audiences. For example, the plot is protracted, slow and repetitive, the development space of the old characters becomes limited, the new characters fail to achieve the expected results, the character relationships are confusing, and sometimes the traditional rural concepts and culture are overemphasized... If there is no fundamental innovation, then With the departure of old audiences, the IP "Country Love" will slowly die out.
"The Case of Di Renjie in the Tang Dynasty" is a super big IP, adapted from the novel of the same name by the Dutch writer Gao Luopei. It presents the detective story of Detective Di Renjie in the form of a unit drama. Although the audience's expectations were very high before the broadcast, it attracted a lot of negative reviews after the broadcast. Zhou Yiwei's image of Dee Renjie, who is capable of both literary and military skills but with a unshaven beard, deviates greatly from Liang Guanhua's version of Dee Renjie, which may be difficult for some viewers to accept.
If Dee Renjie's image is a matter of opinion, then the drama does have a big problem in the setting of suspense reasoning: the reasoning is seriously insufficient. Too much reasoning is presented directly through dialogue rather than through visual storytelling, plot design, and character actions. The audience cannot see the concrete processes such as clue discovery and physical evidence analysis, and the suspense and interest brought by reasoning are greatly reduced. Although the level of individual unit dramas is okay, they are overly indulged in power struggles and conspiracies, and some of them usurp the show.
The youth idol drama "In the Blizzard" starring Wu Lei and Zhao Jinmai was launched before the Spring Festival holiday, but it also failed to take advantage of the Spring Festival holiday to make a breakthrough. In the final analysis, the play uses "love at first sight" to set up the emotional relationship between the male and female protagonists. It can effectively attract the audience's attention in the early stage, but the subsequent plot fails to create new conflicts to increase tension. It only revolves around the initial emotional heat between the two, making the plot too monotonous and repetitive.
In short, the Spring Festival period is one of the most important prime times in the drama market, with major dramas frequently released. But whether the series can win over the audience and gain lasting reputation is still determined by the quality of the series itself. Both TV stations and video websites should adhere to the principle that content is king, accurately grasp the emotional needs and entertainment habits of viewers during the Spring Festival holiday, and combine diversified promotion strategies to successfully create popular hits through the Spring Festival.
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